Game journals for board games I engage in, mostly PBEM.
Some journals are updated while the game is ongoing, some afterwards.

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

Pax Romana 102: Scenario 5 - Turn 2

Turn 2

Action Phase

With the fewest VP, The East has the first activation (followed by Greece, Rome, and Carthage). News of a Bounteous Harvest in Rome is greeted with jealousy by all other powers, not least because Rome's stability is already so high that the harvest has no effect.

Major Move: The 1-3 leader in Iconium leaves 1HI behind and moves to Ancyra with the remaining troops.

Minor Move 1: Build a town in Ancyra.

Minor Move 2: HI in Cicilian Gates to Antioch.

Greece has the next AM.

Major Move: 2-4 leader, with 1Li and 1 Cav in Brundisium activate. They embark for naval transport, thus ending any significant Greek presence on Roman soil. After being blown slightly off-course en-route, they debark at Dyrrhachium and march to Pella, where they pick up 2HI. The march continues to Naissus, where they pick up 2LI, before ending at Sirmium in Pannonia, taking control of that province.

Minor Move 1: Create a Garrison in Nicomedia from the LI.

Minor Move 2: Create a town in Nicomedia.

Rome follows with the next AM.

Major Move: The 1-3 leader in Nemaussus activates with the LG. He picks up 2LG from Narbo and attacks the tribe in Tolosa. The tribe turns out to be 2BI (Michael: "Girl scouts telling scary stories.") and are easily swept aside. The force pauses briefly to create Garrisons, leaving a garrison and LG in Tolosa before returning to Nemaussus.

Minor Move 1: Create a town in Nemausus.

Minor Move 2: Create a town in Tolosa.

Carthage has the next AM.

Major Move: The 2-4 leader in Carthage is activated. He embarks with his forces, sails to Lilybaeum, where he picks up an LI, then sails to Hispania, debarking in Gades. The force moves overland to Bergidium.

Minor Move 1: Create a town in Brigantium.

Minor Move 2: Break down LI at Caralis into two garrisons.

The first four AMs are now used, and the first AM pulled from the "draw cup" is for Greece. They start by playing the Independent Expansion card to place a Garrison in Apulum (Dacia), taking control of the province.

Minor Move 1: Create a town in Lissa.

Major Move: Activate the 2-4 leader in Sirmium. He creates garrsions out of an LI, leaves one behind in Sirmium, then moves to attack the tribe in Tropacum, which turns out to be 5BI. It requires two attacks, but in the end, the tribe is wiped out.

Minor Move 2: The Garrison in Nicomedia moves to Abydos.

Carthage is next up. A Rebellion occurs in Hispania, placing 3BI in Merida and removing a Garrsion in Malaca.

Major Move: Activate the 2-4 leader and the large force at Bergidum. They attack the tribe in Toletum, which turns out to be a whopping 7BI, but is wiped out in a single attack all the same! They then move to Merida to attack the rebellious BI there, eliminating all of them. Carthage ends its campaign by creating garrsions from an LI.

Minor Move 1: The Garrison in Caralis embarks naval transport and sails all the way to Malaca.

Minor Move 2: Build a town in Tingi.

Rome is next up.

Minor Move 1: The LG in Boviantum activates but does not move.

Major Move: Activate the 2-3 leader in Rome. He moves to Tarentum where he picks up the LG, and destroys the Greek Garrsion in Pasetum before ending the turn in Neapolis.

Minor Move 2: Build a city in Boviantum.

The East has the 8th AM, everyone has now moved twice. The East's turn starts with news of a Barbarian Invasion in Gaul, with 6BI and a 1-5 leader. But, before the Barbarians get moving, The East moves its own forces.

Major Move: 2-6 leader in Antioch picks up LI in Pelusium and Memphis before ending in Alexandria.

Minor Move 1: HI in Iconium to Seleucia.

Minor Move 2: Garrison in Side to Seleucia.

Next up, the Barbarians move from Limonum (because of their love of pottery), dropping off a unit in every legal stop, to Septimanca (Hispania), where they end with 2 BI.

The next AM is also for the East and, once again, is accompanied by a Barbarian Invasion. 8 BI, 2 Cav, and a 2-5 Leader appear in Novio Magus (Germania Superior). The force moves to Coricum in Dalmatia, depriving the Greeks of control of that province, but doing no further damage.

The East then take their 3rd Activation.

Major Move: 2-6 leader in Alexandria creates Garrisons from an LI, then moves with 2HI, 2LI, 2 Garrisons to Cyrene where he drops an HI, LI, and Garrison. The remaining force (HI, LI, and Garrison) moves to Arsinol.

Minor Move 1: Create a town in Cyrene.

Minor Move 2: Create a town in Arsinol.

The next AM is Carthage's 3rd activation and brings with it news of Pirates. The Pirates appear in an NTP between the newly-founded Town of Arsinol and Leptis Magna in Libya.

Major Move: The 2-4 leader in Hispania moves. He creates 2 garrisons from an LI, then attacks the Barbarians in Septimanca and Callagurris, destroying both Barbarian forces utterly. The force then moves on the last remaining tribe space in Hispania, at Illerda, destroying them completely as well.

Minor Move 1: A Garrison in Toletum attempts to move, but fails.

Minor Move 2: The second Garrison in Toletum succeeds in sailing to Baleares Insulae.

Rome's 3rd Activation is the next one drawn.

Major Move: The Barbarians in Coricum move through the Alps to Besontio in Germania Superior. They suffer 30% attrition passing through the Alps and arrive cold and hungry to take on the 5BI tribe in Besontio. The tribe rebuffs them strongly, sending them back over the Alps where they end with just on cavalry unit left. Meanwhile, the tribe in Besontio is reduced to just 1BI remaining.

Minor Move 1: The LG in Neapolis travels by sea to Gaul, ending in Nemausus.

Carthage's final activation is next. Carthage had intended to play a Naval Ambush card against Rome's legion moving to Gaul. But the timing was dicey (a casualty of PBEM) and in the end, a war between Rome and Carthage was narrowly averted...for the time being.

Minor Move 1: Galley squadron at Gades moves to Malaca.

Minor Move 2: Build a town at Melita.

Major Move: Barabarians in Torinoraum activate and attack the tribe in Virunum (Noricum). The 5BI tribe are forced to defend against two separate assaults by the lone Barbarian cavalry unit and take 1BI loss before succumbing.

The East's final activation comes next. Pirates appear off the coast of Asia Minor, between Amastris and Byzantium.

Major Move: The 1-3 leader in Ancyra activates, leaving behind 1HI and 1LI, and moving to Trapezus where it ends with 2HI, 1Cav, 1EL and a Garrison.

Minor Move 1: HI in Seleucia moves to Side.

Minor Move 2: Create a Town in Seleucia.

Rome has one activation and Greece has two activations remaining at this point. Rome's AM comes out first and Rome, alerted to Carthage's intentions, attacks first.

Minor Move 1: Legion in Nemausus moves to Emporiae where Carthage fails an interception. It then continues to Barcino and ends in Numatia where Carthage once again misses an intercept chance.

Major Move: The 2-3 leader and 2 legions in Tolosa move to Callaguris where Carthage intercepts them. The Roman forces are defeated and retreat to Tolosa. But they return after a short pause to regroup, and this time Carthage is unable to intercept. The Romans end their turn in Callurgis.

Minor Move 2: A Garrison from Nemausus moves to Emporiae, surrounding and cutting off the Carthaginian force in Illerda. In addition, Carthage no longer controls Hispania (territory) or Tarraconensis (province).

Greece has 2 AMs to close out the turn.

Major Move: The 2-4 leader in Tomi attacks the tribe in Ulpianum, leaving Garrsions in Tomi and Melta as it moves. Two successive waves, however, are unable to defeat the Tribe, and the Greek Amry is forced back to Naissus to regroup.

Minor Move 1: An HI from Athens sails to Cnossos in Crete, taking control of that province.

Minor Move 2: Build a town in Tomi.

The Greeks have too many cards and are forced to discard Naval Ambush before their last AM is played. They also receive word from Spies about The East's intentions.

Major Move: 2-4 leader is activated with 2HI, 1Cav, 1LI. They finish off the tribe in Ulpianum. Then they move to Lissa where they board ships and sail to Crete. In Crete, they pause briefly to drop off the LI and embark the HI before returning to the Danube, debarking in Solonae and ending in Coricum.